The Last Suit You'll Ever Wear
by FFgurl4lyfe
Summary: Turks come together to try and fix the oddities that are popping up from an unstable lifestream. RenoxCissnei
1. Chapter 1 Demon Dogs? Great

Because Reno/Cissnei is my favorite Final Fantasy pairing, and it definitely doesn't get enough love. Here you go! For reference, 'Daniel', is Martial Arts (Male), 'Rod' is Rod, and 'Kylie' is Gun (Female), from Final Fantasy VII Before Crisis. I do love reviews, so feel free to give them to me! Thank you Kenticusness for the title, since I was stuck on coming up with one.

* * *

"Why the hell are we out here Rude?"

Reno's disgruntled voice came, along with a grunt as he pushed away some foliage and gingerly hopped over it. He hated this place. Hated everything about it. And hell, it came him the creeps. Big, glowing trees? It was like the place was on crack. "You should have stopped daydreaming when Tseng briefed us." Oh, great. Rude and his sarcastic humor. Casting a look back at his partner of so many years, Reno gave him a smile that oozed sarcasm. "Oh ha ha Rude. Very funny. And I know why we're out here, or supposed to be doing anyway. The place sure looks alive to me!", he sarcastically shot out, waiting for what he would say but not getting any response from Rude.

So they kept on. Not seeing a damn thing. Reno could be back in Edge, hitting up a bar and drinking his night away, and instead he was out here in the middle of God forsaken nowhere, with no beer and Rude as a companion. Which, hell, Reno loved the guy, but he'd much rather be looking at some female then him. Rude had to understand that. Of course, Rude _had_ always been a sucker for the women that would break your heart. When one name came to mind, he shuddered. More like a vixen there anyway. Not that he'd had more luck in the 'keep a woman' department. But that was because he didn't want to keep one. Or so he told himself.

And why the hell was he thinking about this while they were on a mission? Oh, right, because there wasn't a damn thing to do out in this glowing freak forest. Scanning the area, Reno pushed his glasses up a bit further on his face and tapped his shoulder with his EMR. "This place gives me the creeps." He was just being truthful. Hell, it should give anyone the creeps. Trees weren't supposed to glow like that. They were supposed to be green…and leafy. Another reason why he didn't like this place.

"It does have certain…oddities.", came Rude's delayed response. Something Reno was used to, if he got an answer at all. Trampling through another patch of underbrush, Reno stumbled out on the other side, scowling as he watched Rude simply step over it. Oh…well sure, it would be nice if you were as big as Rude.

"Oddites? Right, only _oddities_. Like big-ass glowing trees." That earned him a chuckle. Pulling out his PHS, Reno checked the time. It was going to be nightfall here soon, they'd been crawling around in this damned forest for hours, trying to find this 'threat' that Tseng was telling them about. "Shoulda sent 'Laney," Reno started with a huff of breath. "Ain't nothin' to do, she could have actually handled it." Reno knew he was getting a disapproving look from Rude, but he wasn't seeing it, so it didn't matter. "Elena's saved your ass before Reno, keep that in mind.", came the quietly spoken reprimand. "Yeah!? Like when!" Unfortunately, Rude had a great memory. "Like that time in Mideel." Well…Reno couldn't really argue that, but he was going to try anyway. "She didn't save my ass! I had that under control, I just didn't want to get all the glory myself. One is the loneliest number, ya know. And you sure weren't comin' to save me." He heard the 'whoosh' of breath that came from Rude being unamused and grinned. "I was too busy cleaning up your mess. And explain how her finding you unconscious, gagged, and bound isn't rescuing you."

"...Eh…" Rude looked satisfied with himself, but Reno couldn't help but put a monkey wrench in that satisfaction. "I can't help that everyone wants some Reno time." That earned him a palm to Rude's face, before he grinned back at him. "You're an idiot Reno, you do know that, right?" "That's what my mom always tells me.", he shot back cheerfully. "You haven't spoken to your mom in twelve years.", Rude casually reminded him. Well…touché then. It burned to have Rude beat you at a sarcastic duel.

* * *

Reno had the distinct feeling that they were being followed.

Hesitating with his hand on a tree, he subtly peered over his shoulder, pretending to be studying his companion while checking out the forest behind them. He hated the feeling of being stalked. Aqua eyes scanned here and there, but unfortunately for him, the terrain kept him from really being anything. The mist hid much. That and the trees blocking much of the sun caused a nearly blind view. He hadn't heard a sound out of place, nor had he seen any odd things in their searching.

Which was exactly the problem.

'You're paranoid,' he thought to himself, glancing over at his partner to see if Rude might have any of the same inclinations. Well, even if he did, whatever emotions he might have or feelings on the situation were successfully hidden behind his ever present shades. So instead of trying to play a guessing game, he opted to just get it out in the open. Laying a hand on Rude's arm to stop him, Reno dropped his voice lower. "I feel like we're being watched. You see anything?" Rude might have brushed off what Reno had said as more of the 'heebie jeebies', but there was a serious note to the redheads voice that made him consider the option.

Reaching up to adjust his glasses, Rude peered first at his lanky companion and then over his shoulder. "I haven't heard or seen anything unusual.", he commented. Reno hated that feeling of paranoia he was getting right now. "Exactly. It's too damned quiet here. Keep your eyes open." Reno hadn't needed to tell the bigger man that, for Rude was good at doing so, but he made no comment other to nod. Still, as they stepped out once again they were both more on edge.

A large pool. Reno dropped down by the body of water, shimmering there eerily and sighed. He really hated this place, but spoke no more of the creepy feeling that he was still getting. There was unspoken communication between the two men that they were both getting that same feeling. "The flower girl..." Reno nodded. This had to be close to the place where she had been laid to rest. Probably not the exact pool…but close. They didn't often speak of Aerith, or Zack either for that matter. Actually, they didn't often speak of anyone that had been a part of their past. It was easier for everyone that way. They could think of the people, think of how they had been sent to track Zack Fair and Cloud Strife down and bring them back, but they didn't think of the failure to do so. They could think of Aerith and how she had been killed.

And ever looming in the background, was the Turks that they had used to fight beside. They had thought them all dead, but Reno was glad to have realized that they had survived when the shockwave emitted from the destruction of Ziconiaide had destroyed the construct on which the rest of the Turks had been standing. He could still remember the terror that had gripped him while he watched the supporting construct that his 'family' had been standing on collapse. He and Rude both. It was a moment in life they wouldn't be forgetting, nor did they talk about. And even though he learned that most of them were still alive…there was one that hadn't showed up to help in the evacuating of the civilians. One that hadn't come home that day.

As soon as the image of her flashed in his mind, Reno shut it out. It would do no good thinking about that now. But while crouched there next to the water, Reno felt a shiver run down his spine, causing him to shudder. This…was why they tried not to talk about the people that had been lost along the way. "Don't, Reno." How did Rude know what he was thinking about? "I know." But it was hard.

A second later, still lost in thought, came a screech that caused him to spring to his feet and them both to whirl around. "Shit, what's that?", came his immediate reaction to what they saw. Rude just grunted in reaction, so Reno figured that he didn't know either. The growling came after, followed by snarling from the grotesque beasts that were arriving. They looked…like dogs. Big, ugly as hell, drooling demon dogs. Oh…what a fun day at the office. A second trotted up a second later, and a third…fourth, fifth, sixth. "Damn, you ready Rude?" "As I'll ever be." Reno pulled out his EMR as one sent another screech into the air, which mellowed into a screech and howl mix. "That's cute."

The next minute they were on top of them. Grunting slightly, Reno twisted out of the way as one flew toward him, slamming his EMR –and zapping it with the electric charge – on its head. With a yelp, the creatures went to the ground, writhing there as the charge ran through its body, before stretching out and lying still. Out of the corner of his eye Reno saw one trying to gnaw on Rude's arm. Before Reno could react, he watched as it was bodily picked up and slammed into some rocks, yelping before a well placed hand movement snapped its neck. Okay, so Rude could take care of himself as always. As another jumped Rude, Reno was faced with two. As they jumped toward him, Reno ducked the swiped paw of one, coming up with his EMR to jerk into its underbelly and zap it. Backflipping away, Reno kicked the jaw of another beast, causing it to fly backwards as he moved quickly to follow it and end this little battle.

* * *

Well that had gone smashingly well.

Slapping Rude on the back, Reno tapped his shoulder with his EMR and moved toward one of the dead creatures. When he got there, Reno knelt down, prodding it with his EMR before staring at it. What the devil was it? He'd seem some pretty crazy shit in his life, but this took the cake. It wasn't one of anything, just some grotesque looking creature that looked like something from some horror movie. Still, they hadn't been hard to take down. "Ugly bastard," he said when he rose to his feet. "Think we should take one back to ShinRa with us?" "The scientists would probably like to study it." Yeah, probably. Well, glad the whole thing was over and now they could get back to-

"Look out!", came a shout from Rude. Reno, not having been paying attention, turned to try and see what Rude was yelling about, when something big swept him and Rude both up and deposited them face down on the ground. Groaning, Reno clutched at his stomach and sat up, blurry vision clearing slightly as he saw Rude crawling to his feet. The next thing he saw was a huge, ugly as sin creatures looming down on them. "Shit," he bit out, adrenaline assisting him to roll out of the way just in time to avoid being crushed by a giant claw that slammed into the ground, causing it to shudder and knock him off his feet as he attempted to get up. Rude was up at least. Springing to his feet, Reno avoided another swipe at him narrowly as Rude gathered his strength and slammed a fist into the 'leg' of the creature. Or whatever the hell it was. It didn't do a thing. Not a thing. 'Shit shit shit shit shit,' he thought to himself, before waving at Rude.

"We gotta get the hell out of here! Comon!" Turning on his heel, he attempted to run, getting only a few feet before he felt that thing collide with him again. This time he slammed into one of the trees before falling to the ground. He could barely register what was happening anymore, but he had obviously landed on Rude, who pushed him off. Reno flopped onto the ground and attempted to get up, getting to his hands and knees before once again they were being slammed back and into the ground. They didn't get back up this time. Through the ringing of his ears and the pounding of pain that was spotting his vision and making him see triple of everything, Reno watched the giant thing come at them. One step…two.

They were dead.

No way they were living through this.

Reno tried to stand up, tried to sit up, tried to do anything, but he couldn't seem to move his limbs. Through the fog he couldn't seem to make out what was happening, but the blow he expected to come that would end their lives never did. But he felt something warm clasp his hand. "Reno!? Reno!" Summoning all the energy he had left, Reno opened his eyes, glancing up at a figure that was kneeling over him. Wavy, chestnut hair, petite figure. She…she…he must be dead. Moving his lips in vain, it took an extreme amount of effort to get anything out. Weakly he tried to grip her hand, but he couldn't accomplish even that. "C…Cis…?", he finally whispered out raggedly. "Stay with me Reno," came the soothing, yet urgent voice. Stay…stay…with…he could try. Blinking his eyes rapidly, he tried to keep them open, yet failed as the darkness took over.

* * *

"Rod! You've gotta distract it!", Cissnei shouted over the noise, shielding Reno and Rude from the advancing creature. Grunting, she drew back her shuriken and let it fly, watching it as it sliced through the 'face' of the beast and returned to her. Leaping in the air to catch it, she landed crouched down. "Ow! God damnit! What the hell do ya think I'm doin'?!", came the bellowed reply from the other side of the beast. Flipping open her PHS, Cissnei dialed a number quickly, getting a "What's the status Cis?", from the deep voiced male on the other end. "Daniel we need the helicopter two miles west of your current location right now.", she spoke quickly, still hearing Rod swearing and taunting the beast to try and get its attention diverted from the two fallen Turks. "On our way," came the calm voice, helping to calm her down as well.

"Tha' all ya' got?! Huh!? Come at me!"

Rod was doing a spectacular job at distracting it.

Still, it could turn back at any moment, and she wouldn't be able to do anything then. Glancing between the two men, Cissnei knelt down, wrapped her arms around Reno's chest and started trying to drag him away. Thankfully he was a lanky one, instead of Rude's size. Huffing and puffing, Cissnei managed to drag Reno to a rock outcrop and went back for Rude. Doing the same with him, she wrapped her arms around his chest, but had dragged him only a few yards when she heard the blades of the helicopter. Abandoning her effort to drag the larger man, she sprang to her feet and cupped her hands over her mouth. "DAN'S HERE, GET DOWN!"

She hoped that Rod had done so, because the next second the sound of shots filled the air. Cissnei ducked down and to the side, on one knee, shielding Rude and herself. From where she was, she watched as Daniel and Kylie opened fire with the high powered machine gun fitted onto to the helicopter. Screeches filled the air as the beast jerked and tried to swipe the helicopter from the sky. Cissnei held her breath as Daniel expertly maneuvered around the flailing beast and Kylie continued to shoot it, releasing it when they weren't knocked from the sky. As it fell back and continued to try gaining its feet, the beast slammed into trees, causing a massive amount of destruction. God, she hoped Rod had managed to find somewhere to bed down in.

Continuing to hold her breath, Cissnei stayed where she was, crouched over until one final round of shots knocked the beast off its feet. In its descent toward the ground, it knocked over trees that were around it, before finally resting there, half submerged in the water that the two men had been crouching beside only moments before. "Rod?" As the helicopter started to land, Cissnei abandoned the downed, but still breathing bodies, and took off at a dead run toward where she had last seen him. "Rod!?", her worried voice rang out as she tried to find him in amongst the chaos. Scrambling over fallen trees and debris, Cissnei tried to find the red haired man. Holding her breath, she continued her frantic search as the engine was cut from the helicopter. "Cissnei?", came the female voice questioningly. Cissnei was about to tell them they had to find Rod, when a disgruntled voice rang out. "Ge' the damned thing offa me!"

Crawling over another tree, Cissnei landed on the other time, able to see the man she was looking for. "Rod…I thought you were dead.", she choked out, kneeling down beside him. "Dan, Kylie, come over and give me a hand." Peering down into the hole that Rod was tucked up into, the beasts appendage covering most of the hole so he couldn't get out, she found herself laughing softly to relieve the tension. "Yeah, yeah, laugh all ya wanna Cissy. Next time, _you_ distract the damn thing an' I'll just keep watch over two bodies." "Oh come on Rod, don't you like being so close to death?", came the amused voice of the blonde that approached from behind. "Oh shut up Kylie." With the three of them pushing at the flesh of the beast, they allowed room for Rod to wiggle out, where he proceeded to flop on the ground and pant heavily. "Whew, tha' was close."

Too close.

"Are you okay Rod?", she asked, still a bit worried. "Aww yeah, I'm fine Cis, don'tcha worry 'bout me." Feeling the hand on her shoulder, she looked into the concerned eyes of Daniel. "Reno and Rude?"

Shit. She'd almost forgotten about them in her near panic over Rod's safety. "They're alive. But they've received severe trauma to their bodies. Reno was holding on when I got there, even tried to talk, but Rude was unconscious already. We need to get them to a hospital as quickly as possible, there's a strong possibility of internal bleeding with the hits they took." Already she was leading the way over toward the two men, jogging to get there faster, until she was kneeling down beside Rude. She watched Daniel drag Rude up and settle an arm over his shoulder, Kylie supporting his other side, while her and Rod did the same to Reno. "Hey! The hell took you two so long anyway? In case ya didn't notice, Cis an' I were kinda in a mess.", came Rod's voice from beside her. Kylie glanced over her shoulder. "Do you ever stop complaining Rod?"

The entire ride to the hospital was filled with the bickering from those two.


	2. Chapter 2 Hallucinations

I'm still not very comfortable with Reno's character, but oh well, right?! Right! Character credit at Enix, and the story is mine :3

* * *

_A vision of a girl. Reno could see her in the half light that filtered into his eyes. She was there kneeling beside him, her soft hand clasped in his. "C…is…", he croaked out, trying so desperately to hold onto her hand. Her features loomed before him, a natural beauty, with crimson eyes that could look right through you, gentle features. "Stay with me Reno…stay…stay…stay…" Her voice faded away in an echo, before she herself started to fade away. Desperately he tried to cling to her hand, to keep her there, to say more, but she pulled away from him. He seemed to be held in a vice like grip then, as he tried to move to follow her, but was unable. As her figure started to fade as well, that same gentle look on her features, he finally managed to move, desperation assisting him._

* * *

"CIS!", came the strained shout of the red haired Turk, as he sprang up and into the sitting position, a hand reaching out after her.

With a foggy memory and somewhat blurry vision, the man peered around the room in a confused fashion. "The hell," he started, before becoming aware of something pulling on his arm. Glancing down, he blinked to try and force his vision to correct itself, before noticing the IV that was embedded into his skin. Falling back against the pillows, weakly propping himself up on one arm, he tried to pick at the line that was down and into his skin.

"Sir! Please don't pull on that," a feminine voice spoke out. Turning his gaze then, Reno caught sight of the disgruntled, but cute nurse that had laid a restraining hand on his hand and was peeling it away from the IV. Peering at her for a moment, his gaze followed her arm to land on-…what was he wearing? A shaky hand reached down to pull at the clothes that were on him. Just…a gown, huh? "I bet you just couldn't wait to get me naked," he announced hoarsely, watching her sigh and fix the line that was embedded into his skin.

"Reno, you're awake."

Gaze swung from the nurse to the dark haired man standing at the foot of his bed. "Awake? Sure. Alive? Not so sure." Why did he sound so funny anyway? And why did his mouth feel so dry? "The hell am I in the hospital for?", he asked, trying to speak slowly so he wouldn't jar his brain right out of his head. The way it was pounding, it sure felt like it could do just that. "You received massive trauma to the head, and everywhere else on your body. Or so the doctors say."

As soon as Tseng said that it all came back to him. The mission, the beasts, the hits, and-… "Shit! Rude,", he burst out, sitting back up in bed again, trying to whip the covers back and stand up. The restraining hands that pushed him back down and onto the bed came from the nurse, who couldn't be over 5'4. Landing back onto the bed, he played a game of glaring with her. "Rude is fine, woke up about two days ago and he's on his feet again now." Reno lay back when he was told that, relief washing through his body. "Good. I'da had to beat his ass myself if he went and died on me-…wait, two days ago? How long have I been here?"

Reno watched out of eyes that threatened to close as Tseng motioned for the nurse to leave. When she had stepped out, he made contact with the dark eyes of his boss. "You've been here five days. I received a call on _your_ PHS from an anonymous caller saying that you and Rude were in the hospital. Whoever it was knew exactly what rooms you were in, your status, and they knew how long they had to get off the line before we could use the voice recognition or trace the call." With a sigh, Tseng picked up the chart that hung at the edge of his bed containing his information and then let it drop back in frustration. "Rude told me what happened out there. Do you have anything to add?" Reno's eyes glazed over as he stared up at the ceiling.

"I saw…Cis, Tseng. She was there, talking to me."

There was silence from the end of the bed. Focusing his eyes, Reno turned his head weakly until he was watching Tseng. "I see.", came out curtly a few moments later. "You received heavy trauma to the head, you must have been hallucinating." Reno's gaze turned back to the ceiling. "She touched me. Felt damned real." He was going crazy, he knew he was. "Cissnei is dead, Reno. Have you forgotten that?" Hell, how could he have forgotten that? Glaring up at the ceiling, Reno saw a vision of her come into his mind. He and Rude had always been close to the younger girl, who had grown up in ShinRa, retraining her in the early years, where she had thought the entire world against her. They'd trained her into the Turk she had become, and she'd been a damn good one. "Yeah, yeah," he muttered out, rubbing his face with a hand in frustration. "But god damn it Tseng, she didn't seem dead there."

When he had watched the support that the Turks had been standing on collapse, Reno had thought them all dead. He had grieved for them. But then they had 'returned from the grave' to help the Turks. They had all come out of hiding to help the few remaining Turks one last time. All of them…but Cissnei. Had it been Daniel that had told him that they had found Cissnei's body? Or had it been Rod? It had been so long ago, that he couldn't remember, but he could still remember the look on Rude's face when they had been told.

He could remember, because before and since, he had never seen that same exact look on his partners face.

They were a family. Being told of her death had been so damned hard on them. And Cissnei in particular. Everyone adored her. She had her bossy moments, sure, where all of them would hit the dirt and hope that it wasn't them that she was going to go after, but she was a little sister to every last one of them. And she was dead. They had been told that she was dead, and why would any of the Turks lie to them about it? They had no reason to. That led him back to the same conclusion. He was going insane. Had he been hallucinating? Seeing things he wanted to, instead of reality? Staring above him with a glazed look, he tried to make sense out of the events with a muddled brain that was restricting him from doing so. And even now he struggled against falling asleep again.

"Get some sleep, Reno. We'll talk more when you recover."

Tseng had barely left the room when Reno rolled over and tried to do just that.

He didn't get much sleep though, as memories haunted his ability to do so.


	3. Chapter 3 Do You Believe In Ghosts?

Yaaay, moving right along! I like reviews! So I'll just keep prodding you to give them to me! Credit goes to Enix for the characters, and the story is mine of course of course.

* * *

"Shit Rude, am I going crazy?" Reno's question was sincere, causing the bigger man to lift his head away from the material he was reading and look over it at him. Reno was staring down at his PHS, looking at the dialed 'Boss man' call that had come two weeks previous. Tearing his gaze away from the call that had been made by…God only knew who, his troubled gaze met serious brown eyes. He'd give anything to be able to tap into Rude's brain right about now. Holding his gaze for a few moments, they studied each other. – or at least, he attempted with Rude's eyes hidden from his shades – He got a shrug before Rude's vision went back to the material he was reading. "Could be.", he said, calmly flipping a page.

"Yo, come on Rude," he burst out finally, snatching the paper file from his partner and pulling it away. "I'm bein' serious here, ya know?" All he got was a sigh, thinning of the lips and a set of arms crossed over his chest in irritation. "Did ya see her? Come on man, ya had to have…" This was eating him alive. As much as he wished he could deny it, it was the truth. This whole thing had him on edge, unable to sleep very well, and irritable because of it. "No, Reno, I didn't.", came the controlled voice. "Crap," he muttered out, itching the back of his head and then resting it on the wall behind him. Leaning forward a moment later, his arms propped against his knees, he stared at the ground, replaying the scene in his mind. He'd hit the ground, and then she'd been there, calling his name. He could still remember the hand that had clasped at his, before she had told him to 'stay with me Reno'. That was the last thing he could remember before it all faded to black.

Was Tseng right? Had he just been hallucinating? Had to be…

And he knew the reasons why he had to have been hallucinating.

Out of the corner of his eye Reno saw Rude's hand slip inside his pocket, a moment later his PHS held up to his ear. Forcing himself to relax, Reno sat back in the chair, staring across at his larger companion. "…Yes sir." Eying him up, Reno rested his hand on his knee and tried to get this out of his brain. What he needed, was a nice, long vacation in Costa, filled with sexy, bikini clad women and no work. "We'll be there in five minutes." That perked Reno up. Glancing up when Rude snapped his phone shut, slipped it back into his pocket and rose to his feet, Reno mirrored his last action. "Tseng's office." He never had been one to elaborate.

* * *

"Do you believe in ghosts?"

Reno thought the question that was presented to them as soon as they breached the office door was a strange one. Glancing up at Rude, he shrugged and walked further into the office. "I dunno boss. Seen some pretty crazy shit though." As soon as they both neared the desk that Tseng stood behind, Reno crossed his arms over his chest. "So whatdya need from us boss?" Curiously asking the question, Reno hopped onto the arm of the comfortable seat that was across from Tseng, while Rude stood beside him, watching with the same intensity.

Tseng's gaze swung to him, studying him deeply, before reaching for a file that was on the desk. "Another mission boss? You should send 'Laney, let her get slapped around a little bit. I've sure had my fair share of-…shit!", he burst out as soon as the file was dropped open onto the table. Springing off the seat, Reno snatched it up before Rude could, batting his hand away to stare at the somewhat fuzzy image of the person staring back at him. Remaining absolutely still, he peered down at the image, wondering if there was some mistake, before his gaze dropped to the bottom right. Damn…the date. Only a few days previous.

Unsure of what to make of the picture, Reno backed up slightly to sit down heavily, feeling the file taken from his grasp before he could do so. Plopping into the seat, he rested his arm on the armrest and rested his forehead on his hand. Rude didn't say a damn thing, just rested the picture gently back down on the desk and sat down on the chair closer to Tseng. "The files?", Rude's calm voice questioningly asked.

"I sent Elena to investigate, the only one missing is on the lifestream…including your encounter two weeks ago in the Forgotten Forest." Nodding at the picture, he continued on. "So I ask again. Do you believe in ghosts? Because it appears the woman we were informed was dead four years ago, showed up on our security camera two days ago. No other camera traced her, so she must have erased the data somehow." Somehow? Hell, if it was Cissnei, or any Turk, they'd know just where to go and just how to do it. After all, the entire security system was the same as it had been in the old headquarters. That, and Cissnei had always been a damn good Turk, smart too. For once, Reno didn't have a damn thing to say.

Standing up, Reno once more walked over toward the desk, staring down at the image that was there, staring back at him. It was almost a slap to the face. Almost…

"We need that file back. It has all the information about the missions and data recorded for the past four months. And that, is not something any of us wants in the hands of some terrorist group." They were all thinking back to AVALANCHE. Rude glanced up then. "The president?" Reno's eyes swung to Tseng. Hell…he hadn't, had he? Brushing off his suit, Tseng glanced between them. "I didn't think we needed to concern the president with this, so he hasn't been informed. At least not yet." Reno released the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding. Rude nodded his approval, but Reno just turned and stalked around the room. Memories haunted him as he did so. That section collapsing, Rod – he was sure it was Rod now – telling him that they had found Cissnei, or…her body, and had laid her to rest. That meant…hell, what did that mean!?

She was dead! Or supposed to be! And he didn't believe in no damned ghosts either. "She's dead, Tseng. Weren't you the one that told me that?!", he burst out. "An' now what. Ya see one fuzzy picture, who could be any god damned chestnut haired woman, an' ya go an' say it's Cis?!" He was reacting poorly, and honestly, couldn't understand why. He should be jumping at the prospect of being right and her being alive, but somehow…somehow…

Rude's hand rested on his shoulder. "We never saw a body."

Well…that was the truth. Looking up at his partner, Reno shrugged the shoulder off and straightened his appearance somewhat. "Okay, okay. So what now?" Tseng turned all the way around, his steps taking him toward the window that stared out over Edge. Remaining there, unmoving for a few moments. Reno shifted his weight while he waited for his question to be answered, glancing between the picture on the desk and their boss standing at the window. "I need someone to track her down and bring her in. If, that is, it is her, and she is alive." Reno felt like he was in another world entirely as he stared down at the picture, his mouth dry.

"…...I'll do it."


	4. Chapter 4 Tell Me You're Real

Okay, so as for the names, Daniel is Martial Arts (Male), Kylie is Gun (Female), Rod is Rod, Samantha is Shotgun, Torin is Legend, and Aneurin (Or Annie) is Nunchaku (Male). (Makes it a lot easier to know that, huh?) I hope you like this, I'm not sure what it was xD Let me know! Credit for characters at Enix, story is mine.

* * *

"I'm tellin' ya Cis, this is some crazy shit that's goin' on."

With a sigh, Cissnei rubbed her forehead, resting easily into the chair that sat in the corner of the café she had decided to sit in to get out of the rain. "Tell me something I don't know Rod.", she asked right after. Settling herself down into the booth that she was resting in, Cissnei pressed her back against the seat and relaxed, watching the rain steadily come down. "I dunno really what to tell ya. I mean, they found a lit-Sam no, cut it-…hey!" "Oh give it here Rod, someone who actually knows what to say should talk." "I can do jus' fin-" "Really Rod? Fine like the last time you were fine?" "Shut up Kylie! An' stop laughin' Sam, I had tha' whole situation perfectly under control!" "Suuuuure you did." "Being held under water by two goonies while they tried to drown you was having things under control? You sound just like Reno used to." "Damn it Kylie, Don' tell me I act like Reno!"

With another sigh, Cissnei listened to the struggle going on the other side, her phone held slightly away from her ear as she did so, resting her elbow on the table and her chin on her elbow, simply staring at the phone the way she would if they were bickering and arguing right there in front of her. The way it sounded now, they were actually physically fighting over the hand held device. "Gimme it!" "No, you can have it back when you actually have something productive to say." "I always 'ave somethin' productive ta say!" "The last time I talked to you, Rod, you were carrying on like a little girl just because some snow got in your hair." "I HATE SNOW," came the passionate reply toward Samantha, causing her to wince before Cissnei finally gave up and motioned for the waitress to come over. Laying the phone down on the table while they duked it out, she smiled up at the waitress. "I'll have a coffee please."

When the waitress left, Cissnei picked back up the phone. "Cis?", came the female voice. How had Sam beat off Kylie? "Okay, so what do you have for me Sam?" The ruffling of paper could be heard. "Alright Cis, it looks like ShinRa sent different people out various different times. Reports of sightings were marked at the ruins of Midgar, specifically sector 5, the Northern Cave, and of course, the Great Glacier and Forgotten Forest." Cissnei digested that for a moment, nodding her thanks to the waitress and thinking on what Samantha had said. Taking a sip of her coffee after adding cream and sugar, she pushed it away and rested her chin on her hand again. "Cis?", came the questioning voice. "I'm here, just thinking." "Gotcha. Somehow, these places have all got to make sense, right? I mean, Torin said he hasn't seen anything in Costa, and Annie said he hadn't heard of anything by Wutai. Why those particular places?" A smile lifted on her features at Aneurin's nick name, born from Rod's stumbling over it a time or two and finally dubbing him 'Annie' instead.

"Torin's probably too busy chattin' up beach babes ta' pay weird crap like this any mind!", came Rod's voice from the background. "Oh come off it Rod. What is it? Are ya jealous?" "Hell yeah!", burst out, followed by a solid 'thump', and an "Oww! God damn it Sam, tha' hurt." "Good, it was supposed to." Clearing her throat, Cissnei ignored the squabbling, - mostly because she was completely used to it – and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm not exactly sure Sam. But...well, all of those places have had some sort of tie with-…Sam, I think you should call everyone. This has to be a bigger issue then a few mutated beasts. Just think about the one in the forgotten forest. We hadn't seen one anywhere near that big until then." "Noted, I'll get them all here. Anything in particular you want me to tell them?" Sighing, Cissnei pressed her fingers to her forehead.

"Bring their weapons."

Snapping her phone shut and slipping it inside her pocket, Cissnei walked up to the counter to pay for her drink, before glancing outside. Still raining…but at least it had slacked off from the downpour it had been, to a more gentle rain. Unfortunately, it was nearly dark now. Which was fine. It was only a short walk to the temporary place she was staying. Opening up the door and tightening the sweatshirt she had on around her, Cissnei quickly flipped the hoodie up to cover her head. Glancing to the right and left, she quickly crossed the street, jogging to avoid being ran down, and then proceeded up the street, not seeing the startled person that ducked into an alleyway to avoid being seen.

* * *

Standing with his back pressed up against the wall, Reno stared upwards in surprise. Was that…had that been…

Waiting a moment, Reno peered around the edge of the building to glance at the person walking away. Through the dark and the rain, he blinked and tried to shield his eyes well enough to actually see who it was. Or rather, if it was someone that was supposed to be dead. "Damn," he muttered out when he was unable to make out anything but the rough build of the person. He could thank the dark and rain for that.

So what did he have right now? Petite build and feminine curves. That only summed up fifty percent of the female population. Yup, no big deal right there. Still, that fit Cissnei's description, so at least he had a chance at getting the right woman. And what could possibly go wrong about following some strange woman through the dark streets at night time? Oh, nothing could possibly go wrong. Not at all. He'd just have to make sure to use his charm if it did turn out to be some random woman that he had no idea about. And that could very well come about; since the woman had hidden her features with her hoodie as soon as she'd stepped outside, giving him a mere moment to notice what she looked like.

Wiping some rain from his face, Reno shook his head like a dog would to try and rid himself of the excessive rain as he followed the figure. She didn't seem to know that he was following her. Which was good. If it did turn out not to be the woman he was after – and who wasn't even supposed to be alive – then he would rather she didn't know that he was following her around in the dark. Women didn't tend to think of that as a good way to start a relationship. Unless you wanted one of pain, where you got a knee to the groin or some pepper spray to the eye. And what the hell were you supposed to do in that situation other then take it like a man? Not like he could beat on just any old woman, or really any of them. That was a damn shame too sometimes. Instantly the Yuffie character came into mind, when she went on one of her Materia kicks and wouldn't shut up about it.

* * *

It didn't take long before the woman slowed her pace, turning around the side of the building and momentarily disappearing from his sight. Reno got to the edge and hesitated a second, before proceeding around himself, not having heard anything and assuming that the woman had just continued on. As soon as he rounded the corner, however, a well-placed punch settled onto his cheek and caused him to stumble back.

Instantly he reacted.

Without allowing time to react to the sting of the fist to his face, Reno whirled to the individual and wrapped his strong arms around each arm, skillfully pushing her back and into the wall behind her, anchoring her there with his own body. In the struggle her hoodie had slipped down so that only a chin could be seen. "Let go," came the disgruntled voice, muffled from the rain. "Hold yer horses Dollface, I will as soon as I-" While he was talking, Reno had positioned himself to be able to hold onto both her hands with one arm and his body. In doing so, he reached a hand up to push back the hoodie. This could go really badly if it turned out to be-…

Oh hell, what now?

Staring down at the young woman in surprise, his mouth went dry very quickly, his features looking like he was staring at a…well, a ghost. With weak knees, Reno pressed her more firmly up against the wall as he rested his forehead on the bricks next to her head, his hands one again anchoring her there. She was warm, and it sure felt like she was real to him. He...he couldn't be hallucinating this time. Right? He wasn't going crazy, right? Tseng had tried so hard to convince him of that when he'd been in the hospital... And then it all hit him. Rod telling them that Cissnei was dead, her not joining in with helping. The look on Rude's face. It took a moment to choke out what he was thinking, but as the rain beat down on them steadily, feeling her pressed up there against him, he finally groaned something out.

"Ciss…"


	5. Chapter 5 The Past

I have nothing to say here! Other then character credit goes to Enix and yada yada. Enjoy! And review of course :3

* * *

How the hell did you react to someone popping up alive when they were supposed to be dead?

Pressing her firmly up against the wall, Reno kept his forehead against the brick behind her for a moment before drawing back slightly. Aqua eyes tried to see expression in the eerie glow of the street lamp. "Hello Reno," came her calm voice. How could she be so damned calm? Even now, he felt his breath coming in deep, ragged breaths, like he couldn't get any oxygen. At least it seemed so to him. "Can you please stop wringing my arms?" Dumbly looking at her, Reno only then realized that he was holding her wrists in a death grip.

Instantly he dropped them like they were white hot. Still, he didn't give her the opportunity to escape. To keep her there, he pressed his hands against the brick on either side of her, in effect trapping her. There were few times that he couldn't think of one single thing to say. Couldn't think of anything to do but stare at her like he was watching a ghost. Now was one of those moments. So instead they stood and watched each other, searching, judging, until he couldn't stand it anymore. "Rod-…they said ya' were dead.", he ground out, trying desperately to get his tough guy attitude back. What the hell was wrong with him? He was weak kneed feeling, almost sick.

"I was."

Without any change of expression, she answered his statement. He waited a moment, hoping that she would elaborate, but she didn't do so. Instead, she left him wondering just what the hell she meant. Staring into her crimson eyes, he tried to read her, to search her, but it was damned hard to try and tell what she was thinking. Shifting and letting his hands drop from trapping her beside the wall, he stuffed them in his pockets. "Ya sure feel real to me.", he mentioned sarcastically. "You can be alive without feeling so." Reno stared at the face of the girl that he had known for so long. What had happened to the young woman that had always been so caring to all of them? What had happened to the smiles? It almost seemed like she had reverted back to the woman that he and Rude had had to reprogram. That woman that thought everyone was against her. "Yo…Cis, I-" "Why Reno? You followed me. Why?"

Lifting his gaze and narrowing his eyes to avoid droplets from entering, he only then realized once again that it was raining. As he looked back down, he saw her shiver. She had to be soaking wet. He sure was. Reaching out a hand hesitantly, he closed it over her arm. "Let's get inside ta' talk. Ya got a place around here?" Hesitation, and a calculated look, before she turned and nodded down the alleyway. "Come on." He let his hand drop as she turned on her heel and started off. Staring at her for a second, he started to follow her, shoving his hands back in his pockets and stilling his racing heart.

It really didn't take too long before she was unlocking some back alley apartment and opening the door. Pushing it open, she walked inside and he saw her glance back at him to check and see if he was still there. Hell yes he was. Shouldering his way into the small – though homey – apartment, Reno took a step inside. "Reno, the carpet," she muttered out under her breath, pushing him back until he was standing on the front entry carpet rug. It was then that he noticed the dirty foot prints he'd just made. "Sorry," he muttered out himself. As she drew away, he caught her arm with a hand, holding her there beside him. While doing so, he noticed that her sweatshirt was completely soaked. "Go get yourself into some dry clothes." Nodding, she walked away and toward what had to be her bedroom. Right before she shut the door though, Reno stuffed his hands in his pockets again and glanced up. "Ciss?" "Yes Reno?" "Don't try an' hop out the back window. I'd find ya again," he calmly stated, meeting her eyes as she stood there, the door half closed. From the flicker that he saw cross his eyes, Reno knew he had hit the nail on the head with what she had planned to do.

And then she gave him a nod and disappeared. With a mighty sigh, Reno took off his boots and walked into the apartment until he was sitting on a chair in the 'living room' that was there, thinking of the woman a room away and trying to not think about what she would be wearing right about now. Glancing up at the wall, he added a quick _'Or not wearing,'_ in his mind, instantly chiding himself. This was Cissnei…a woman supposed to be dead, and part of his family. Leaning forward in the chair, he messed up his hair by tugging at it a bit and then finally leaned into the back of the chair in frustration.

Tapping his fingers on the arm rest impatiently, he glanced at the clock on the wall. How long did it take to peel off some wet clothes and get some new ones on? He'd told her not to escape, and though she had given him a nod like she would follow that council, she might have done that exact thing. She could be half way across the city by now. Turks were resourceful.

And then just when he had been going to get up and check to see if she had jumped out a window and ran, she appeared, calmly walking past him to sit on the chair opposite where he was. "Why did they ask you to bring me in?" She sure didn't beat around the bush. Never had been one to do so. And she was smart too, knew what he had to be there for. "It's good ta see ya too Cis." She seemed to catch herself then, sighing and nodding. "You recovered I see. How long were you in the hospital?" Was it just wishful thinking? Or was there some worry in her voice?

"You were there then…", he started, seeing her nod and shift her sitting position. "Damn it, Tseng tried to convince me I was crazy fer tellin' him I saw you." She shrugged slightly, standing up and walking away. Instinctively, he rose to his feet and followed her. "Who called the boss to tell 'im where we were? It wasn't you, Cis, unless you suddenly turned into a man." If she heard him, she made no attempt to answer the question. While he watched her grab some water in mugs and place them in the microwave, he said nothing else. When she did that and started to walk by, he reacted swiftly, reaching out to snag her arm in his hand. "Who call-" "Why, Reno. What do they want now?"

There was no warmth in her crimson eyes as she interrupted. Letting her go and banging his hand down on the table in frustration, Reno finally got to relieve the tension. "The hell are you acting like this for Cis! God damn it, two weeks ago, I thought you were dead an' gone for years, and now I figure out yer not only alive, but stealin' files from ShinRa. I thought-…we thought. Hell," he finally muttered out, plopping down in a wooden seat in frustration, glaring at the table in front of him. "The hell happened Cis? You don't…smile. Ya haven't smiled once since I saw ya. I thought you'd be at least happy to, ya know, see me. It's been what, four years now? Four god damn years."

Silence.

And so he just kept going on. "Four years ago, when that damned buildi-" "Don't, Reno.", she warned. Blinking, Reno glanced up at her. Funny, Rude had said the exact same thing to him two weeks previous. The next instant hot chocolate was laid there on the table in front of him, before the young woman slipped into the seat next to him and studied him from the corner of her eyes, just as he was doing to her. They lapsed into silence, taking periodic sips from the hot beverages. Somehow it helped to calm him down. "I deleted all the footage." Without thinking he knew what she was talking about. "Missed a camera Cis." Turning his head toward the younger woman, he was unable to keep the amusement out of his eyes or the cocky smirk from his face. "What is it? Gettin' old?" He didn't expect to get any sort of reaction, but she was unable to avoid matching his amusement, and the next instant he was looking at the 'old Cissnei'. Or at least, a shell of the woman, trying to emerge but haunted by some burden.

"I do smile," she said quietly. Turning his head to look at her, Reno was faced with eyes that held more emotion then he had seen from her so far tonight. Instead of looking like a trained Turk, she looked more like an emotional young woman. Like a human being. Reno felt that same feeling in him as he looked at the girl before him. Girl…tch, right, Cis was what, twenty five now? She was a woman.

So why did she look like such a broken hearted little girl right now?

Scooting his chair back, Reno reached his arms out to slip around her waist, bringing her forward and into a hug. He felt the moisture when he pressed his face against her wet hair. And since he couldn't think of anything to say, he didn't say anything at all. It took a few moments for her arms to wrap around him too, but when they did, he felt a little shudder go through her, like she was trying to hold back the flood gates, until she drew away. Flicking his pony tail over his shoulder, Reno glanced away and cleared his throat roughly. "I said smile Cis, not drench me in tears. Women…", he said teasingly. "Shut up Reno. _You're_ the one that got _me_ all wet again," she shot back. When he glanced over though, he was pleased to see the same smile he knew on her lips.

Returning the smile, they stayed there motionless, studying and searching once more, before breaking eye contact and sipping their hot drinks again. Reno would give anything to be in some dry clothes. But he ignored it as best he could. He'd be back at headquarters soon enough to do that. And though he had to take her in, he wasn't going to push her. No way in hell he wanted a crying Cissnei on his hands, and that almost seemed like what he might get. "I'm…" Rubbing the back of his neck, Reno glared down at the cocoa. "I'm damn glad yer alive, Cis.", he managed a bit gruffly, before stopping. He wasn't going to go into an emotional sob fest here, but hell, it was good, knowing she was alive. "Why didn't you come back?!", he finally burst out, facing her while she sat there and studied the table. "I'm over here Cis, not that crumb on the table." Instantly he got crimson eyes swung in his direction. "Because. We'll leave it at that Reno." She, in effect, slammed the door on that conversation.

He watched as she took both their mugs, stood up, and walked over toward the sink. Body moved as she washed them out. Again silence crept up. He had so much to tell her, and nothing came out. Damn it all. "What do they want from me?", she asked quietly. "Hell," he muttered out, resting his elbows on the table. "The president doesn't know," he offered first, watching her turn around, cross her arms over her chest and look at him. "Tseng asked for me to find you. Cis, ya can't just go stealin' files and think you can walk off again. Besides…we all thought you were dead. He probably wants to hug ya and tell ya we missed ya. We all, took it hard when Rod told us you were dead." "Rod told yo-…I see." That quirked a brow on his part. She seemed surprised. Had she not known Rod had said that? And why the hell had he then? "An' Cis…you know somethin' about what's been happening." Silence. Studying her, he could see nothing new cross her features. "Come on Cis, don't stand there and go all macho manly man not say a damn thing. You wouldn't have stolen it if ya don't know somethin'. And hell, we could use the help, 'cause we're sure striking out lately." With a heavy sigh, Cissnei turned her gaze to the side, "After this, do I get a guarantee that I can walk away again? Or is it going to end up like last time, when the president sent his SOLDIERS after us?" "You're gonna have to-…wait a damn minute. SOLDIERS?"

He stared into weary crimson eyes. "Didn't you know? Mr. President sent SOLDIERS after all of us, Reno. He knew, somehow, that we weren't all dead like they'd tried to make it look. The first year of hiding, was simply staying two steps ahead of ShinRa. Finally, it stopped. I learned later it was because of Cloud Strife and his group causing more problems than a couple of 'dead Turks' did. We got our freedom, Reno, because really, with all that happened, the President wasn't going to send his depleted forces to round us up. I'm not living that life again.", she said firmly. Damn. He hadn't known that. Standing up and shoving his chair back in, he faced her. "You know I can't speak for anyone else, Cis." Sighing, she looked down at her feet. "I know." Damn, he'd never felt so bad about that fact in his life. Then he was there beside her, hands covering her forearms. "Come on, Cis. We'll figure it out, right? Tseng likes to go behind the Presidents back when it comes to the Turks. It's not like we haven't done it before." Eyes that were probably searching his soul looked him in the eye, tilting her head way back to look at him. "Okay.", she said quietly, before brushing past him and starting toward the door. Shutting the light off, she opened the door and slid on her jacket. Following her, he held the door open, glancing out at the rain and dreading having to go out there in it. "Come on big tough guy. A little rain bothering you?", came her (was that teasing?) teasing voice. "Oh be quiet," he muttered out. Curling an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her out of the door, locked it, and then closed it firmly. "Damn, yer still short Cis."

He should have expected the slap to the back of his head. "Do I have to tie you up and tape your mouth?" Slipping his hands into his pockets and lowering his head against the wind, Reno glanced over at her. "Still have a dirty mind I see. You can tie me up any time ya like, Cis, but I might need my mou-" "Reno!", she burst out, nudging him with her elbow. "Behave hmm? I came along nice, didn't I?"

Damn, it was good to have her back.


	6. Chapter 6 Always Watching

Well, here you are! Don't ask me what this was, because I don't know either. What else do _you_ want to be included? And don't worry, more Turk arguing time will be coming! Credit for characters goes to Enix, and the plot is mine, so don't steal it or I'll have to track you down. Sick a chocobo on you or something. Very scary. Review to let me know if you want to see something included! Or just if you want to. That works too.

* * *

How exactly was it that Rude got a freely given hug, and all he'd gotten was a punch to his chin?

Watching the big man practically swallow the tiny figure up in his arms, Reno scowled slightly, rubbing his chin where he had been punched minutes before. "Cis,", came the deep voice. If he didn't know better, he'd say that his old time partner and friend was choking up about this whole thing. But this was _Rude_ they were talking about. There was hardly a chance that he would break down right there in the middle of the room and blubber on about how much they'd missed the petite girl. Right? Right!

"I missed you Rude," she said sweetly. Well damn, she hadn't told him that she'd missed him. This was the Cissnei he knew. Sweet, kind, gentle-…well, at least if you didn't do anything to bring out her wrath. Kylie had been one that you didn't want to deal with once in a piss poor mood, but Cissnei…_whew_, that was a whole different story right there. Usually you grabbed the nearest desk to cower underneath when the calm, tiny little bit of a woman got angry. Because when she got angry, he didn't care how big or brawny you were, you weren't going to win.

Shifting his weight, Reno looked around the room. Tseng was standing there, Elena, and of course, Rude and Cissnei. Amazing how quickly they could get together. He'd sent them a text five minutes before they had walked into the ShinRa building, where they had been asked to go into Tseng's office. Reno was having second doubts about this whole thing now that he had made it to his office. He was soaking wet, chilled, and ready to slip into some dry clothes, have a drink and catch some Z's. And hell, he was sure Cissnei felt the same way. And instead, here they were, in front of the firing squad, probably going to be here for hours and hours. Cissnei sure hadn't seemed happy when he had caught up with her, and yet somehow that had turned into a pleasant walk back to ShinRa. He had been able to tell there was apprehension there, and she had quieted down to deep thinking on the walk back, but as soon as she had hit the ShinRa doors, everything about her demeanor changed.

It was like, seeing the old Cissnei back, but it also seemed fake. A façade that she was putting on to get through her time here. Shoulders back, chin up, completely calm and ready. It was like…like-, mentally he snapped his fingers. It was like she was just on another mission. Like her brain had entered 'Turk mode', and she was simply adapting to survive. Wasn't that what they always did in missions anyway? Survived? Adapted? He didn't know what to make of it, but he did know that instantly he hated that she felt she needed to be fake. Damn it all, they were a family. She didn't need to worry around them.

Roughly scooting a chair back in frustration, Reno sat down on it hard, leaning his arms against his knees and leaning forward, scowling at the ground. He missed the look that all four of the people in the room gave him. Missed Rude's slightly raised eyebrow, Elena's eye roll, Tseng's arm cross, and Cissnei's searching eyes. "Cissnei," came Tseng's voice. Would even _Tseng _get a damned hug? Quietly spoken afterword was a professional, "Hello Tseng." Reno had to glance up quickly then, but Tseng got no hug. So only Rude got a hug.

Pulling his suit away from him, Reno scowled down at his wet clothes, before trying to ignore it and relax a bit. What had him in such an irritable mood, he didn't really know. Maybe because instead of being human and letting her change into dry clothes and sleep, they were interrogating her. And him, he'd love to get into some dry clothes.

There was a heavy silence that followed the initial greeting. Reno stubbornly kept his eyes down at his own lap, and Rude…well, Rude never talked anyway. Elena didn't know Cis, and so she should keep her mouth shut. So that left two people to talk. "You're alive." '_Way to go Captain Obvious,'_ he thought sarcastically. "Yes sir." She was going to drive him up a wall with being so polite. "I've been in hiding since the last episode, sir." Sitting down and motioning for the rest to do the same, Tseng cocked a head to the side. "Until two weeks ago." "Yes. I had no idea that ShinRa would have sent two Turks into the Forgotten Forest, so seeing Reno and Rude was just as much of a surprise for me as it was for you.", she said calmly, glancing at Reno out of the corner of her eyes. "We're fortunate Cissnei was there," Damn! Rude was talking. "You stole the file on the appearances. Why only that?"

Reno's gaze swung to Cissnei. That was one thing she hadn't answered when he had asked, and he was just as curious as Tseng was. "Curiosity." They waited for her to elaborate, but she didn't once again, which was frustrating Reno, and it had to be frustrating Tseng. "Only that? Harmless curiosity made you break into the doors and security of ShinRa, steal information, and then erase data?" Well…when he made it sound like that. "Yes.", she replied, keeping her calm and simply sitting with her hands folded in her lap. "When you see a grotesque beast that isn't supposed to be there, you get curious." Reno could guess that, though she was telling the truth, it was only partial truth. And if he could, then Reno was guessing Tseng could discern the same thing. "I see." How did one go about this, anyway? They were used to this, to getting answers, but not from one of their own. Cissnei had done exactly this for so many years, she knew what to say to frustrate them, because they'd all been frustrated at some point. The half truthful answers were the worst. And right now, Tseng and Cissnei were having quite the stare down. Of course, it seemed like a casual study, but it was much more intense than that.

The problem was, here, that Cissnei was the one controlling the conversation, when Tseng should have been. "Why not just come and ask us?"

Cissnei's gaze dropped down then, to her lap. "Because this would have happened," she said quietly, letting her guard down for second. Reno could see it working out in her brain, before she lifted the walls back up and brought her eyes to look at their boss. "We need that file back Cissnei, and you should stay here while we…sort this out." It wasn't a suggestion, it was a command, and they all knew it.

It was there that he hopped into the conversation. "Yo, boss. Cis an' I are pretty wet. Got rained on the whole way here. Can we, ya know, wait for tomorrow ta' to anything else?" He got a nod as Tseng pushed himself back from his desk. "Of course." Though what was Cissnei supposed to wear? That was a dilemma, until Elena stepped up. "I have some clothes you could borrow Cissnei." Graciously the chestnut haired girl turned to the blonde and nodded. "Thank you." "Cissnei?" "Yes, Tseng?" "It's good to know you're alive." "Thank you sir." Reno watched as the two girls headed off, before getting up and starting to follow them. He needed some damned dry clothes. Once the girls reached the door, his voice came again. "And Cissnei?" When she stopped and turned her head back, he continued. "You don't need to hide anything from us."

The point was there.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Reno started to follow the girls after they had disappeared through the door. All he could think about was getting into some clean clothes, _if_ he put on any at all, grabbing a beer, and then sleeping for the next twelve hours. Unfortunately, Tseng had other ideas. "Reno." With a mental sigh, and an exaggerated outward groan, he turned back. "Yeah boss?" "She still trusts you. Find out." Shit. Shit. Shit. Instantly he bristled. "Yo! I dragged 'er back here, ya know?! Send Rude ta get her ta spill her guts. She trusts him just as much as she does me!" Reno was sick of having to be the one that did all the dirty work when it came to Cissnei. And he was sure as hell not having another near sob fest on his hands. Not…that she'd cried before, but damn, she could have! And he had absolutely zero experience-…well, at least now when it came to crying women. Or perhaps that wasn't an example. "_Reno…" _his voice came as a warning. "Alright, alright, fine!" Glaring at the ceiling for a moment, Reno turned and walked away, muttering under his breath.

All he wanted was to get out of these blasted clothes!

* * *

Oh screw the shirt.

Buttoning up his pants, Reno dismissed the effort of finding a shirt, which would include walking _all the way _over to the dresser drawer, (Which was five feet away) getting it out, _and_ putting it on. Yup, way too much effort. Dry underwear, dry pants, and a beer in his hand, Reno was just about the most content man he could make himself. And even though the bed called to him, he was going to show what a _perfect_ gentleman he was and go see how Cissnei was doing. Or was he going to try and get this whole get information thing out of the way as quickly as possible?

Either way, he was going to show how nice a person he was by making sure she was tucked in and had everything she needed. Then again, the offer of being tied up wasn't all that bad either, he thought with a wry grin. Redoing his ponytail, Reno left the goggles on his desk and opened the door to the outside world. Too bad no one was around to see his sexy body. Then again, not wearing a neck tie helped with that too. How could he deny the women of what they all really wanted?

Him.

* * *

One knock.

Two.

Three.

"Yo, Cis?" Pressing his ear up against the door, he knocked again and then listened to see if she was even in there. It was a little room, what the hell was she doing in there? _If_ she was even in there. Then there was a muffled 'bang' on the other side, followed by words he couldn't understand. Drawing away from the door, Reno had just enough time to look lazy and like he _hadn't_ been concerned that she had jumped out the window and ran off, before the door was pulled open. There emerged a very sleepy looking Cissnei standing there blinking up at him. "Reno?" So she hadn't jumped out the window. How surprising. Squinting at him, Reno just grinned back, waiting for her to ask about the lack of a shirt. To her credit, and his disappointment, she didn't say a word.

"Hey Cis," he said easily. "Doin' good?" "Yes," was sleepily spoken out while muffling a yawn. "Great!", he said cheerfully, forcing the door open further gently and inviting himself in. To her credit again, she didn't complain about it, just closed the door with a sigh and started walking back toward the bed. He couldn't help but notice just what she was wearing. She looked damn good in her clo-…'Laney's clothes. That kinda did dampen the whole 'sexy' thing down. You know, being in Elena's clothes. "So…'Laney just happens ta' have a matchin' hearts pajama set? Kinky. I wonder if she sleeps in that with the boss in mind."

Watching Cissnei sit down on the bed and finally lay down, knees practically tucked up to her chin, Reno couldn't help but notice again just how small she was. "Did you have some other purpose other than to be ShinRa's teenage girl gossip?" Grinning, Reno climbed over her and plopped down on the bed beside her, back against the headboard. "Well, if ya had some rope, you could show me those tying skills you menti-" "_Reno_," she groaned, lifting her head and sending him a glare. "Cut it out." "Okay, okay." Silence for a moment, but he couldn't really help himself. "If its spare rope that's the problem, I brought some with." How she moved so fast, he'd never know, but the next moment he was ducking to avoid a well-aimed pillow. Springing back up, he grinned. "Ha! Missed me Ci-", came out, right before being stopped by a second pillow beaming him right in the face, making him spill a bit of beer on his chest. "Hey! Watch the beer!" "Serves you right."

"So…I'm supposed to be the one doing the tying?", he said cheekily, right before she pressed a palm to her face, but she actually smiled after. "Do you ever let up?" "Nope!" "Oh…I thought not." With no pillows to rest her head on, the chestnut haired woman scooted up until she was sitting with her back to the headboard as well, sending calculated eyes sent toward him. Oh great… She knew. She always put two and two together. "So are you supposed to charm the answers right out of me?" He had to grin at the way she put it, still, how was she able to do that. "Well first off Cis, I did wanna know how you were doin', because I'm just that nice a person. Second, I couldn't help but be a little curious if 'Laney found ya somethin' to wear or if ya just had to go without, -Which earned him another glare- an' a distant third is gettin' any answers. Actually, put answers behind figuring out how well you can tie a knot."

"So what if I say 'go to hell'?" Reno laughed, before rubbing his neck. "Then I'd just have to be obliging I guess." Meeting her eyes, all teasing fell away. Aqua eyes stared into crimson, judging, studying, before she finally broke eye contact. "I've been studying the same activities for the past few months. Five, actually. At first, it was just because I'd stumbled upon one of the creatures when I was hiking across the Great Glacier-…well, let's not go into details about just why I was doing so. Alright?" He had to grin. "Sounds like a story I wanna hear some time." "…Sometime," she finally agreed, before continuing on. "I didn't know that ShinRa was studying the same things, so when we saw you and Rude out there, and-…well, I heard you ask him about the 'mission', so I assumed it had to do with the creatures, especially after some came to attack you. I hadn't ever seen such a big one though. So they seem to be increasing in size. And naturally, I was curious as to what ShinRa had that I didn't."

Honestly, Reno couldn't find any fault with that explanation. Still, something nagged on his mind. Something…but he couldn't pick anything out, so he shrugged it off. She'd given him more than she had Tseng anyway. Maybe that's all it was… Maybe he wasn't slowly losing his mind. "Thanks Cis." Running a hand through her still damp hair, she shrugged, before getting out of the bed and retrieving her pillows. "You're welcome, Reno." Watching her get all nice and settled in was relaxing. How so, he really couldn't explain. Taking another swig of the beer he was still holding but had nearly forgotten about, he tried to get the motivation to leave. Watching as she finally got herself all settled and cozy, he had the overwhelming urge to just fall asleep. What was she going to do? Drag him out? He almost snickered aloud. Not likely. The poke to his ribs jerked him out of his thoughts though. "I'm tired Reno," she mentioned, another yawn causing her to cover her mouth, eyes drooping.

"That's alright, you can just lay there an' I'll do all the work with the knot-" "Reno!", came the voice again, before hands came from nowhere, pushing him off the bed. Grinning, Reno caught himself before he planted his face into the floor and stood up. "Oh alright, fine. Night Cis." And stood there grinning cheekily down at her until he got a proper 'goodnight'.

It wasn't until his head hit the pillow, that he realized what it was that had been bothering him about what she had said.

Cissnei had said when 'when **_we_** saw you and Rude.'

Who was the 'we' she was talking about?


	7. Chapter 7 The Past Haunts Us Still

Oooh man, it's been way too long since I updated this _ Thanks everyone for favoriting this story! I need to get better at being active about it, but you know how college goes. ANYWAY, I really like reviews! Story title goes to Kent. Thanks for that! Characters go to Square Enix of course, and the story is mine, so don't go stealing it or I won't be the happiest lady ever. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

"So?"

While the one worded question was given to him, Reno sunk down in the same seat he had the night before. This time thankfully, he was dry and not soaking wet. "Still didn't say much boss. Said she was on the same trail we were for five months and didn't know that ShiRa had gotten involved with it." Reno rubbed a hand over his eyes while he slumped further into the comfortable chair that he was now resting on. "Mmm." It was moments like this that Tseng's little grunts instead of actual answers really annoyed Reno. "Mmm isn't much of an answer for makin' me always be the shit giver.", he grumbled out while staring out of the corner of his eyes at the boss that was now simply staring down at the desk he sat behind. "You're the only one she would have told anything to, and you know it."

Sure, he knew it, didn't much like it though. "Would have been just fine talking to Rude." Why was it that even this conversation felt like he was betraying Cissnei in some way? She of all people would know that he would have to tell Tseng everything she'd said. Hell, she'd even guessed he'd been put up to it anyway. Still, he felt a bit miserable about doing this shit-…oh what the hell was he even saying? What was this? Mother Reno coming out for a play? Seeing Cissnei alive must have really jogged a few brain cells loose, because Reno couldn't remember ever feeling guilty about asking someone a few damned questions and then telling his _boss_ about it.

And yet here he was, feeling miserable about it.

Sighing in frustration, Reno flicked his wrist up and glanced at his watch. Seven in the morning. Hell, why was he even up this early? Narrowed eyes flickered over to his boss at that point. Oh yeah, that was why. He sure hadn't enjoyed a call at six thirty in the morning telling him to get his ass into Tseng's office. He'd been tempted to tell Tseng to go to hell, but the man had hung up before he could form the words, and he hadn't answered his phone when Reno had called him back to tell him that. And so here he was. Sunk down in his chair, Reno wished he had a drink, or that he could be passed out somewhere sleeping for a few more hours. What had he done recently to get this sort of punishment? If he _had _to be woken up early, Reno would have rathered woken up by some warm and cuddly woman. Well, if Cissnei hadn't been so close-minded about that idea, he could have. At that same moment a vision of his former work mate in Laney's matching heart pajamas popped into his mind. Almost instantly a wry grin came onto his lips. Unfortunately the image was quickly shattered.

"I'd appreciate you listening when I'm speaking Reno."

Rolling his eyes, Reno sat up a bit and tried to at least pretend to be interested. "Sorry boss. What were ya talkin' about?" The look he got was one of mild frustration that was quickly masked. Well good! Let the big boss man get a little cranky. _He_ wasn't the one that had been woken up early for this nonsense that could have waited. "Listen Reno, there has to be more than that. How could she have gotten anywhere working alone?" Reno sobered when Tseng said that. Leaning forward, Reno locked his hands together and stared at them, his aqua eyes changing from a few different emotions. "Maybe she had some help." "Indeed." Sitting there for a moment, Reno remembered that one thing she'd said the night before. 'When **_we_** saw you and Rude.' Who was the 'we' she was talking about? Or was there really no 'we'? Was this person – or people – even important?

"Shit.", he muttered out. "Look boss, she said something abo-" Reno was interrupted when Tseng's cell phone started to ring. With a hand raised to stop Reno, Tseng answered the phone. Crossing his hands over his chest, Reno slumped down further in the seat and tried to ignore whoever thought it was such a great idea to call someone at seven in the morning. Must be someone near and dear to Tseng's heart. Tseng didn't sound too happy about whatever this was though, but then again, Tseng rarely sounded happy, so Reno tried his best to ignore the conversation.

As soon as he hung up though, Reno indignantly looked at him. "You call me at six thirty in the morning and then ignore m-" "That was the ground crew I sent out last week. We've got another situation." Reno groaned. "The last one nearly got us killed.", he complained. Unfortunately for him, Tseng didn't seem to be listening, and moments later launched into an explanation. "Do you remember Griever?" Reno's head snapped up at the name spoken from Tseng. "We killed that son of a bitch seven years ago in the Junon mess." "It appeared that way." Reno shook his head in disbelief. "Woah, back up. What the hell are you saying?" "I sent that team into the ruins in Nibelheim to do a once over in the old reactor. Someone's been there…recently. A makeshift lab had been set up inside." Damn, that was a mess. "And?" "Apparently a letter addressed to 'G' was found on the table. The seal was the same that Griever had on all of his own letters." "Shit." "You need to get in there for yourself and really look into it. The ground crew weren't around for any of that, and they don't know anything about Griever or what we might be dealing with." For once Reno agreed.

Rising from the seat, Reno started walking back to the door. "I'll leave now boss, let me wake Rude up an-" He'd gotten his hand on the handle when Tseng spoke again. "Reno, take Cissnei with you." Hesitating with his hand still on the door, Reno glanced back. "She said that she's been looking into this for the last five months. That's longer than we have been, so she could know some more. And she was there in Junon." So she had been...

* * *

Without hesitating at the door to Cissnei's room, Reno opened the door and stepped inside the room that had just been started to be lit by the sunshine outside. Closing the door most of the way shut, Reno quickly strode through the small apartment and toward the bed where Cissnei would still be asleep. After he'd stepped up beside the bed, he found himself stopping to look at the woman that rested there, tangled up in the covers – and somehow the same sense of serenity washed over him as had the night before.

Shaking his head to rid himself of that softness – and what the hell was wrong with him anyway? – Reno leaned forward. "Wake up Honey." While he said that, Reno laid a hand on her shoulder to wake her. Almost instantly she turned into a raging lunatic underneath him. Only because he'd been a martial artist for so many years did he catch the attack. Almost instantly she turned somehow in the bed and sent a leg to kick him. With quick reflexes, Reno blocked Cissnei's assault on him by grabbing her foot and holding it there while she struggled. "Ciss! Damn it, it's Reno!", he snapped. Instantly the struggling ceased. "Reno?" "Yeah! Who'd you expect? The boogieman?" Only once he thought it was safe did Reno release her foot. Despite the half-dark room, Reno found it amusing to watch her get a hold of herself again. "If you want to wrestle Ciss, just say the word and I'll be happy to accommodate you."

"I'm sure.", she muttered out while she sat there and rubbed at her eyes. "What are you doing here Reno? It's-…Reno it's seven in the morning. I didn't even know you could be up this early. Who died?" Rolling his eyes, Reno threw the clothes he had in his hand – a Turk uniform just her size – on the bed beside her. "Ha ha Ciss. The big boss man says we've got work to do." He could tell from her risen eyebrow while she fingered the uniform that she had her doubts. "Work? Reno-…" "Remember Griever?" Well that had her attention. "Of course. We killed him-" "Yeah yeah, seven years ago. That's exactly what I told Tseng when he brought it up an hour ago. Get your uniform on and meet me by the heli-pad." Despite saying that, Reno's attention was wandering at the sight of Cissnei once more parading around in her matching pajamas. So much so that he missed the fact that she was standing there staring at him. "Do you need anything else?" The same mischievous smile appeared over his lips. "Not unless ya need some help getting out of what you're already wearin'." "Get out Reno." He chuckled while he walked to the door. "You shouldn't run from your feeling-" He was cut off by the door being slammed in his face after he'd stepped out.

Well alrighty then…


	8. Chapter 8 Could Things Get Creepier?

Ooooh so much time goes by between updates to this...sooo much time! Oh well, here's your next chapter! Characters go at Enix, plot goes at me of course of course! You should definitely review and stuff, because I like to read those :D And I hope that you enjoy this. Also is it just me or does the beginning to that sentence sound really bad?

* * *

Gently easing the control stick to the proper position, Reno checked the various gauges in front of him and then snapped his eyes back and forth while he landed the chopper easily. It took hardly any time at all before he felt the helicopter they were seated in connect with the ground and settle there. As soon as he had everything done that he needed to, Reno cut the power, feeling it start to wind down easily. Removing his headset, Reno turned to start crawling out of his seat when he happened to glance over at his chestnut haired companion.

And the look on her face stilled his movements. Pain, anguish, regret… everything he had seen in her eyes when he'd snagged her off the street, and then later on in her apartment was reflected once more on her face. A moment later he tore his gaze away from her and looked at what she was looking at, however. It wasn't hard to guess where her mind must have gone. It was shitty what had all happened here. Shitty what they'd done to some good people. Shitty, shitty, shitty, but life went on. "You alright Ciss?" She didn't turn to look at him, which didn't set well with Reno, but he could understand where she was coming from if she wanted any solitude. "Do you ever think of what we did?" Overcome with a burst of desire to protect her, Reno laid a hand on her arm. "Not worth it, Ciss. We did what we did, nothin' can change that now." The nod he got in return wasn't very reassuring, but a moment later she seemed to pull herself out of it and that sad little girl he kept seeing glimpses of was replaced by the confident woman she normally was.

"We should get going."

Why were women so damned frustrating?

While following her out of the cockpit – and enjoying the view – Reno was muttering to himself about that. He was going to have to ask Rude about that when he got back. His partner might not have anything to say, but at least he would listen.

As soon as they stepped foot on the actual ground, they were met by an employee that had been sent here from ShinRa to investigate. "Sir! Ma'am.", he said in greeting. Reno took him in and sized him up in one glance. His outfit was a little too well kept, his back a little too straight, and his gaze a little too direct for Reno's taste, especially the appreciative look he sent toward his partner, which Cissnei didn't seem to notice whatsoever. "Tseng said that you have something to show us?", her gentle voice finally asked. "Yes ma'am! We didn't expect any sort of life to be here, so when we found the lab it was somewhat of a shock to us. But you should never not expect weird things here in Nibelheim I suppose." Wasn't that the truth!

"Lead the way, yo!"

* * *

"Hot damn, would you look at that Ciss."

As soon as they'd walked through the doors, Reno's 'creepy' radar was going through the roof. "It does look like something Griever would construct." Reno snorted. "You can say that again. If this doesn't say hyperactive, insane psychopath scientist, I'm not quite sure what does." "He was Hojo's protégé, what do you expect?" Reno eyed at some of the files that were scattered on the table, before glancing back at his partner. "Probably secretly his son. You know how children of Hojo turn out." Walking over to the table, Reno reached down to pick up a piece of paper with odd looking scribbles on it. "I do. I would say just about as charming of people as you can find, wouldn't you say Reno?" Reno found himself snorting for the second time that night and sending her a wry grin. "Now see, ya need to smile more, because that's the Ciss I miss." With a snicker, Reno prodded Cissnei with his elbow. "And I'm also a poet, didn'tcha know?"

"The day you become a poet, I'll be a man." Reno pretended to recoil in disgust. "I just _knew _there was something different about you!" He earned a set of eyes rolling at him. "You caught me, Reno. My big secret is out." Tossing the file back on the table, he eased over and slipped his arms around Cissnei's waist, whispering in her ear quickly. "I'd still like to see those tying skills." Just as easily she slipped out of his arms and gave him a gentle slap upside the head. "Reno! Could you at least act like you're doing something productive?" "Yeah sure, toss the rope over an-" , his teasing voice was quickly cut off. "Reno sometimes I wonder just what level your brain really is." Still, he couldn't help but notice the amusement she had on her features.

Giving him one last exasperated look – which he just sent a wink back toward – Cissnei returned to looking around the lab, which he did as well. Picking back up the file, Reno plopped down in the cushioned chair and started to try and decipher the meaning of the scribbles he was reading. "Yo Ciss, check it out. Mentions something about using the lifestream for experiments." With the chestnut haired woman quickly peering over his shoulder, Reno lifted so she could see it. "Reno, do you think Griever could be…" "Messing shit up by using the lifestream? Can't see why not, he's done some pretty shitty other stuff just like it."

Cissnei nodded in agreement. "Say anything else?" Quickly skimming it, Reno shook his head. "Just a lot more nonsense, but nothin' that seems to be important." Placing it down, Reno picked up another piece of paper that was down on the table and started to read it while Cissnei started walking around the small lab. "This doesn't seem right, Reno. Griever almost always had as big of a lab space as he could get his grubby hands on. Doesn't this seem a bit cramped to you?" When he finally looked up, Reno could see what she was talking about. "Yeah yeah, well this guy isn't exactly stable anyway." With a frustrated sigh, Reno slapped the piece of paper back on the others and started to ruffle them together. "We should at least take these back to Tseng, see if he can make anything else out of them." Reno was paying too close of attention on his partner walking back toward him to notice anything odd about the papers, but fortunately for them, Cissnei wasn't. "Reno!" Her sharp voice caused him to pause in his drawing back of the papers. "What?"

Before he knew what was happening, she'd snatched the papers out of his hand and set them back down under the light, all piled on top of each other like he had swept them together. Curious, Reno popped his head over Cissnei's shoulder to see what the hell she was up to. "Well damn!" Through each of the scribbles on each page that Reno had thought was nonsense, came a picture of something else. Looked like some two headed alien, but next to the…whatever the hell that was, was a picture of three swords, all tipped upward. Reno didn't quite understand, but Cissnei's mind was apparently working faster. While he was still digesting the image the pieces of paper had given them, she thrust them back in his hands and was suddenly moving again. It was then that he noticed each wall had a sword, though all were currently tipped down, though it didn't quite click until she got to the nearest one and rotated it until it was pointing upward.

Which jumpstarted his brain. So that he trotted over to the third while she got the second one. Careful not to slice his fingers off, Reno grunted while he twisted the sword until it was pointing upward. As if on cue, there was a series of loud clicks and hisses, before a portion of the wall slid back from the far side. "What the...", he muttered out in surprise, before tossing the papers back on the desk and following his companion through the portion of the wall that had just been sucked backward, and then down the spiral staircase leading further into the old reactor.

And he'd thought the other section of this lab was creepy.

As soon as he stepped off the staircase and into this second room, Reno seriously wanted to turn on his heel and run back up. This had led to a very large space, oddly glowing from the lighting of the various tanks that littered the room. "Holy shit.", he finally got out. When Cissnei started toward one of the tanks, however, another surge of protective instinct kicked in and he grabbed her arm to yank her back. "I'll look first.", he said. The odd look she gave him was probably a reflection of his questioning himself, but he shrugged it off and inched forward until he could peer into the tanks. Almost instantly he wanted to recoil. There, floating in the odd liquid substance was…what were they? Cissnei peeked in a moment later, and when he glanced at her and her to him, it was pretty clear that she was wondering the same thing he was. "The hell are those?"

"I…I'm not sure, Reno. That liquid though…it glows green." Braving another look into the tanks, Reno gulped and tried to look at the liquid instead of the sunken eyes of the being floating in there, looking as if it were being…grown inside that tank. He's seen some weird shit in his life, sure, but this might just take the cake. "You…should probably call Tseng." Nodding almost dumbly, Reno gulped and backed away from the tanks. "I'll walk outside; probably don't get that great of reception down here." Or he just needed to get away from these damned…whatever they were so their sunken eyes weren't staring at him. "You'll be okay down here by yourself?" "Yeah, Reno. I'm sure they won't crawl out of their tanks and kill me to suck out my brains." Despite the tease, Reno didn't feel any better about that.

But he did feel better once he was outside again. Grabbing out his PHS, Reno slipped it up to his ear and waited until he felt the familiar voice on the other end.

"Yeah, boss? We've got some pretty creepy shit down here…"

* * *

With his report to Tseng done for the moment, Reno hesitated at the door that led to the creepy underground dungeon. He'd rather not go down there, but he knew he had to. Rubbing at the back of his neck nervously, Reno finally chided himself and started back down the stairway. On light feet he padded back down, and when nearing the end, he nearly called out to Cissnei. Her voice, however, cut off the thought of doing so. Instead, he pressed himself back up against the wall and peered at her while she talked in light tones on the phone.

"…good, tomorrow at six I'll meet you at the church."


End file.
